Category: beauty

I got this oil in my Ipsy bag a couple months ago. It’s a Macadamia Oil Treatment. You can use it as a styling oil before you blow dry. But it gave me a recipe to make a sea salt spray with it. I figured hey why not give it a try. Does anybody else feel like they are just spraying water on their hair when they do this!? Like, I just went through all the trouble of blow drying and curling my hair, and now you want me to spray water on it? I wonder if this would work better on somebody with naturally curly hair. I was told to use one cup of warm water, 1 tablespoon sea salt and 1-2 teaspoons of the oil. I was so excited to make it and I am kind of sad that I wasn’t happy with the results. I left my hair feeling a little bit try to, I assume that was the sea salt. Maybe more of the oil would help counteract that and keep some moisture? Anyway, that was my experience with it! I would love to know if any of you you sea salt spray on your hair and if it is beneficial for you.

Another thing… I feel like all I see all over the internet is advertisements. I mean, I know we all have businesses to run and we are all trying to make it in this world. And hustling is part of that. But it is so hard to believe what is a good product and what is not in this world. And hustling is part of that. Even celebrities, all you see on their social media is unplugging this and that. Will we really do anything for a dollar? It is so hard to believe what is a good product and what is not because everybody is just advertising everything to death. So many hair vitamins, tanning products, skin products, makeup products. It is just hard to weed through all of it and figure out what are the good ones and what ones people are just trying to plug to make a quick dollar. There are so many MLM companies too..lipsense, R & F, essential oils, mascaras, lula roe, Amway, etc. People claiming that they are an entrepreneur when they sell this stuff. Being an entrepreneur means that you start your own business by creating your own product. Not by selling something somebody else created. I’m sure they are all great products and I do know people that sell each of those, so I’m definitely not dogging that. I just wonder how much of it is about the products and how much of it is about bragging about how much money you make selling your products so you can recruit people to do it with you. It just seems odd to me that people have to brag about how much money they are making selling a product. I definitely don’t like to talk about how much money I am bringing in, why do people selling these products feel the need to talk about that? I think this is just our generation. This is how people sell products now, especially stay-at-home moms who want to be able to work at home. I totally get it, I just can’t get myself to get into that world. The moral of this rant is I just don’t know what to spend my money on anymore, of course we all want great products I just want to make sure I am buying the right ones and putting my money into the right businesses. I wish everybody I know success! Whatever it is they choose to do. Ciao lovelies!

I was feelin’ kinda icky for a while there, and have been slacking on my posts. Feelin’ like “who’s going to read my posts anyway” “I have nothing interesting to say” “I look terrible I am not posting any selfies ever again.” HA! The selfie queen give up selfies? Who was I kidding. And then all the sudden..I get my groove back. It takes work to get your self confidence back up after talking yourself down. It takes steps. Work out more, eat better, get ready in the morning, put your makeup on etc. Eating better=better energy. Exercising=endorphins released=positive thoughts. We can’t give up on ourselves. I know I am not the only one who has negative thoughts, but the key is to not let them take over. Sure, go ahead and sulk for a couple days, but don’t let it become habit. Eating and exercising really do determine my moods. Too much sugar causes the sugar spikes which make me tired. Eating heavy makes me tired. I cut out fast food and even took sugar out of my coffee and smoothies for a few days. Eating small meals throughout the day has definitely helped. And an added bonus-my kids are on summer vacation hours! They have been sleeping in until 9 am or even later most days! I am a night owl so I appreciate this. Both of my girls passed out in the car at 5:30 pm yesterday for almost 2 hours. At first I thought “wow, this is going to be fun we can stay up late together!” …and then 11:30 pm came and they were still fighting sleep. Oh how it bit me in the butt! This time of year is so awesome though, isn’t it? It’s warm out til bedtime, it’s light out until 9 pm, everyone is outside playing and enjoying themselves. It brings out the happy in you even when you don’t want to be happy.

So, the point of this post-IPSY. My last bag was AWESOME! So many great products!!! The Cabana Boy Shadow/Blush was from a few months back, but is still one of my favorite blushes to wear. This month I received a body lotion that feels like silk on your body and smells soooo amazing, it is called Delectable-coconut & cream. They sent me a pretty large bottle to sample too. It feels so good on my skin. The Vasanti lip gloss really shocked me. It was not sticky at all, and gives me that WET look. A lot of lip glosses lack that. It really feels moisturizing on my lips as well. The bold brow by city color was a hit too! It comes with a medium and darker brown shade, so you can mix them to find your perfect shade. Some days I do the lighter color alone, and some days I do the darker alone to give a more dramatic look (when I have full makeup and hair done.) The eyeliner I received is really nice because it is waterproof but is super easy to get off with my Pond’s makeup remover. The only downfall of the pencil is I cannot get the sharp lines for the cat-eye look I so crave. I have to add the sharp edges in with one of my other eyeliners. The best eyeliner Ipsy has sent me is the EM Cosmetics felt tip eyeliner..it has such a soft, pointy tip that I can achieve any kind of cat-eye I want. The only thing I was not super fond of was the Trust Fund beauty nail polish. It did not go on very smooth and took too long to dry, so the application just looked sloppy. I only use Essie nail polish, you cannot beat them!! If I am in a hurry I can throw one coat of Essie on to get me cy, and it dries super quick.

So all in all, I am having a blast trying all of these new beauty products. I can’t wait for next month! If any of you are not as happy with your Ipsy bags, make sure to review what they send you so they can better understand what kind of products you like. Have a great week!!!

So here we are finally, warm weather has arrived. More like hot, sweat in places you don’t dare admit kind of weather. Am I the only one who has been tempted to throw their hair up in a messy bun everyday? As a hairstylist, it just feels wrong. Like I’ve thrown in the towel or something! Can’t give up..never give up! I’ve been trying to figure out ways to bear the heat, but also look somewhat presentable. I don’t mind my hair down, I just want it out of my face and I was sick of just tucking it behind my ears. I found something that looks cute, and keeps my hair out of my face. I just take a mohawk section on top of my head seperate it into 3 sections. And I twist them and pin them..so simple! If I want to get real creative I will braid them. But not everybody can do that on themselves, twisting seems much simpler. And if I get super hot during the day I can put my hair in a low bun with this look and it still looks pretty cute.

It is also time to not be bloated season. This is hard for me because I do love my salt in my carbs, but I’m trying to cut back and all the yucky stuff right now. I actually managed to gain a few pounds recently and I think it’s because I have been experimenting with cooking. Must be all that naan! Darn you mediterranean fopd for being so good! It is time to think of light meals, like yummy salads! I experimented today and made a salad with dried cherries, apple chunks, Gorgonzola cheese, walnuts, chicken, and of course – lettuce. Why the only one that could do without lettuce and a salad? All of the add-ins are what I love to eat! For example, I love to just cut up tomatoes, cucumbers, and feta cheese and put some olive oil, lemon juice, and salt on it. So refreshing! For my salad dressing today I used 4 oz olive oil, 2 oz balsamic vinegar, and 2 oz red wine vinegar and seasoned the dressing with garlic powder, brown sugar, salt, and seasoned salt. This dressing is really good on a Greek salad too! I sauteed the chicken on a pan with half butter and olive oil. I seasoned the chicken with onion powder, garlic powder, salt, and seasoned salt. And was really good black and chicken! Tastes so good on a salad too or in a wrap.

Those who know me know I dance to the beat of my own drum. Not in the rebellious way, I do like to follow the rules because I’m a bit of a scaredy cat-worrier at times. But when it comes to fashion, hair, makeup I have always loved to try new things. I do love to stand out in a crowd. They call it attention-whore in this generation, but why does wanting to stand out and make an impact make you an attention whore? I want to reach people, motivate them to dance to their own beat! You love blue lip gloss but scared to wear it? Wear that ish! Rock it at the grocery store even! It will feel invigorating.

I colored my ends pink the other day, and it is washing out at a fast pace. I wanted to embrace the last of my pink hair by wearing a sassy outfit today. If you follow my Instagram you will see I posted a couple pictures of tulle skirts recently, I have been on the search for the perfect tulle skirt! It was hard to find locally because it wasn’t exactly Spring yet, and I was too scared to order one online because I always seem to be disappointed when I try that.
I was shopping at the mall with my girls the other day and I was in Forever 21, and there were two tulle dresses randomly hanging on a rack. One was pink, and an XL. But I saw a black one that caught my eye, and it was in my size and super affordable at 34.99! We have a wedding in a couple weeks and I thought this would be perfect to wear! I can sport the tulle skirt I have been looking for for so long!

But today, I was looking at that that dress thinking why can’t I wear it now, why wait for a special occasion to wear something I so love! I threw on my Converse and my Mossimo jean vest. I even started digging through my hair accessories. I found a headband that I loved but when I put it on it squeezed my head so hard it made me look like I had a balloon on the top of my head. So I cut the elastic part of the headband off and just bobby pinned it in my hair. Perfect!

Don’t be scared to get all dolled up for no reason, it made me feel good today and it can do the same for you! And my girls had fun throwing some dresses on today too, I inspired them to be all girly and fun today!

Also, you can do this to a lot of dresses or skirts that you own, throw on some combat boots or tennis shoes with a jean jacket/vest, leather jacket or whatever and it will make it look more like day-wear rather than an evening look. Now go try something out of your comfort zone! It will feel so good, promise. xo

I couldn’t find the dress I bought in a store online, but here are some other options from Forever 21.

As you all know by now, I have been getting Ipsy bags for quite some time now. (If you don’t know, now you know..you’re welcome) Finally, after 6 months of receiving them, I found a product worth ordering! I almost almostttt ordered eyeliner a couple times..but found a cheaper version by Wet n Wild at Target. I am very close to running out of my Bye Bye Undereye by it cosmetics...so I may have to splurge on that one too! It helps me look awake in the morning, and covers up this weird visible vein I have under my left eye. That sounds so creepy, I swear it’s not…and I may be the only one who notices this thing..but it bothers me and I am happy a cream actually covers it. Only women think so deeply in detail when it comes to something as miniscule as eye cream. Miniscule to some..life changing to others!! Good undereye cream is life changing people! Especially to a women in her 30s! We are tired!

Whew, that went off course fast. Back to topic. Tarte cosmetics. They sent me a lip paint and lip gloss in past Ipsy bags. The lip gloss I like, but the lip paint I LOVE. This stuff dries right after applying, and does not go anywhere! I can smooch my kids right on their face all day with this stuff and it does not move, nor does it get on their cute little chubby cheeks. The color they sent me was O.K..but not a shade I would personally choose if I had to spend my money on it. I finally got the courage to splurge on this stuff after a couple glasses of wine on St. Patty’s Day. Liquid shopping courage!! The shades I got are FESTIVAL and CHEERLEADER. Festival is a nude mauve and is perfect for every day wear. I could rock this shade with NO other makeup on and it still looks appropriate. Now cheerleader is another story. This hot cherry shade is meant for sassy days!! Days when my eyeliner and hair is on point, or I am going to a party. I feel like the biggest bombshell with this shade on my lips. How can a lip shade do this to me? Hey, I will take the confidence boost. Thanks Tartiest!!!

The two downfalls to this stuff is that it makes my lips feel a bit dry, and while adding gloss to them helps that, and makes it look even more sassy, I can no longer smooch my kids after doing this. Adding a lip gloss takes the no smudge factor away. This stuff will come right off after glossing them up. So choose wisely how you want to wear this stuff. And make sure you always remove dry skin from your lips before putting the lip paint on. You need that smooth surface to work on. The lip scrub I use helps get the lip paint off at the end of the day as well. Any makeup remover should work because this isn’t as strong as lipsense, which I heard is not an easy task to remove.

I hope this review helps you gals who have been looking for a no smudge lip product. I was ecstatic when I found this stuff because I always love rocking a red lip, but usually refrain bcause it ends up bleeding or on my teeth. I am not a happy girl when I drive home and realize in the rear view mirror that my lipstick has traveled to the rest of my face as well while I was in public. Have a great week everyone!!!

PS.. the sample bronzer and blush came with my purchase..I love them both! I applied them both on before taking pictures..so you could all see what they look like! Subtle..yet pretty!!

My favorite day of the month arrived over the weekend…IPSY day! Nothing makes me happier than seeing that bubbly hot pink package in my mailbox. I knew what was coming as I do every month..but it is still so exciting to whip out my 5 new favorite beauty products! I have not been disappointed yet. Well maybe a little disappointed..in one of my products this month. I received a liquid liner for my brows from Eyeko..and I was very excited. I need a new brow pencil, so I was most excited for this. It just felt wet on my brows, and doesn’t give them any particular shape. It almost looks like I just tinted my brows with hair dye or something. I like to make my brows look fuller and with this I didn’t feel I could alter the shape of my brows. I even tried them a second time this morning and ended up going over it with a fine brush with a brow shadow I have by N.Y.C. It’s my backeup brow go-to when I am running low on my other brow pencil.

I also received a matte lip paint by Tartiest. I am not sold on this yet..the major plus of this is that it dries fast and does NOT come off afterwards! I actually have to use my jelly pong pong coconut coffee lip scrub to get this stuff off! (I also use this to get the dry flakes off of my lips as of recently, I got this in my February Ipsy bag). The downfall of this lip paint..it makes my lips feel dry, and the color ages me a bit. I need either a more girly pink/nude, or a hot red. They have a color called Cheerleader that I may try, since my red lipstick from MAC seems to come off pretty easily. After wearing this lip paint for a while today I got sick of my lips feeling dry, so I applied my trust fund beauty lip gloss in the shade unprofessional. This helped a lot and gave it a more youthful look. Here is what it looked like before I applied the gloss..

I received a lip gloss by them as well a couple Ipsy bags ago..I love the gloss! The applicator on their glosses and lip paints is amazing. It actually makes applying it fun..and easy! I never go outside the lines when using their lip products. Here is the glossy lip paint in wcw (berry)… (ignore that my nose looks like it belongs on an ogre on the second picture..bad angle but it shows the gloss quite well!)

The Desserted Island Cake Supreme Body Mousse smells AMAZING. I think it may be sold out for the time being but you can check that link to see if it is back in stock. The smell is my favorite thing ever and I bet everyone else agrees because they can’t keep it in stock! If you baked a caked then smothered it all over your body..that’s what you smell like after you apply this stuff (minus the mess and stickiness of real cake of course). Maybe bake a cake before you put this stuff on..the smell gives you major sweet cravings. Of course they gave me a sample so I am going to have to order a buttload of this after I run out.

As for the other 2 products..the PUR concealer and First Aid beauty face moisturizer..I will get back to you. I haven’t been using the face cream long enough to see results yet, and the concealer is not my color yet..maybe if the sun ever decides to shine in Michigan I can get a small tan and see if this stuff is worth using regularly. (please sun…shine on me, Michiganders deserve to have a Spring every once in a while)

Just a sidenote…nobody tells me to say this stuff or pays me to talk about their products so this is all my HONEST opinion. I love beauty products and looking/feeling beautiful and I am sure you guys do too! It doesn’t hurt to get someone’s opinion before purchasing a product you are wondering about! And if you haven’t tried IPSY yet..DO IT! It has opened up a whole new world to me!! I never knew what beauty products to try, never knew what was out there..until now. I look forward to next month’s bag and to share its beauteous contents with you fine people <3